One of those days

Ever have one of those days?  Sometimes, there are times it seems to me anyway, that I just can't catch a break. Today was one of those. I had signed up for a webinar/telecon to get what I thought would be vital information to my career.  I had actually missed the last webinar/telecon because I had forgotten to put it on my calendar.

Lesson learned.  This time around I signed up two weeks ahead of time.  I put it in my calendar, I set an alert. I got the email. It was in a different time zone. No Problem! I still had two and a half hours to go. Just to be certain I set my ancillary clock on my Vista machine to show the time in PST time as well so when I hovered over my computer clock, I would verify I wouldn't be late.

I called in a few minutes before the call, as was requested.  A few to me is code for more than 2 less than 10.  I called in and got a 'gasp' live person, who asked where I was calling from. I told the lady what country I was calling from.  I was then transferred to a man, who asked where I was calling from. I explained I was out of country and was calling in but my home state was Florida.  "Oh, sorry," he says. "We aren't taking any more callers from Florida."

Honestly I am a little bit miffed. And then I realized that it's not necessary for me to listen to that particular webinar. Heck there is another one in a week. I can sign up for that one.  I am,after all, interested.  But, I know that this pitch is going to be relative to the spin of making a sale, a pitch that will lead to more information.

I know how this particular outfit operates. I have succumbed before. Here's the catch. They really do have solid information. They really are a marketing company which I will most likely use in the future. I have used them in the past. However, they do limit the number of people they work with.

Being blown off particularly in a job search bites.  How many thousands upon thousands of times have you sent out resumes only to hear not a thing in return.  I want to relate an experience. Last July I began pushing out resumes for a position. I knew the contract that I was working on was ending soon. I begin my search about six months in advance of contract end.  I sent out easily 500 resumes.  I followed up and my follow ups were eventually  narrowed down to  5 interviews and three quality offers. I chose one.  However the other 495 languished through varying stages of death. Follow ups sometimes-probably most times should be done every four weeks. It's like a marketing campaign of yourself. Persistence some times is key.

The inverse of persistence would have to be apathy. I know that most companies do not return your email nor a 'sorry it's not me, it's you'  letter.  I got one last week;The first week of March, for a job that applied for, as far as I can tell in my records... Sept 08.  Perhaps persistence might have been key if I'd have been following up on all my job searches back then.  On the other hand, maybe someone refreshed a database and it kicked out a generic email.

Market yourself, be persistent, and if you want to find out who's hiring now: www.govtcontractorjobs.com